The Crown bosses admit Claire Foy was paid less than co-star Matt Smith

Producers of The Crown have admitted Claire Foy was paid less than her on-screen husband Matt Smith.

Smith’s portrayal of a young Duke of Edinburgh earned him more than Foy’s Golden Globe-winning performance as Queen Elizabeth in the hit Netflix drama.

Producers Suzanne Mackie and Andy Harries acknowledged to Variety that Smith’s previous starring role in Doctor Who meant he was paid more than Foy – who had appeared in a number of smaller British dramas including the BBC’s Wolf Hall prior to The Crown.

Mackie vowed that would not be the case in the third series, which sees Olivia Colman replace Foy as The Queen.

"Going forward, no one gets paid more than the Queen," she said.

Earlier this year actress Michelle Williams was paid a fraction of what her All The Money In The World co-star Mark Wahlberg earned for the movie’s reshoots.

Wahlberg donated his 1.5 million dollar (£1.1 million) pay cheque to Time’s Up for the work to scrub the disgraced Kevin Spacey from the film.

The donation came as he faced intense scrutiny when it was reported Williams received less than 1,000 dollars (£720).